Acclaimed rock singer, electronic music DJ and radio broadcaster Skin has put together a songwriting demo studio and DJ console setup in her New York home, which includes Audient’s iD22 audio interface. “Like most studio nerds, my home setup is ever changing, but I have enough gear to record studio quality vocals,” she says.
iD4: “I’m really loving it, it’s a little beauty!”
“I also record my radio show on Absolute Radio at home, so I re-jig things around for that. For recording my radio show I use the Audient iD22 interface with my Austrian Audio OC16 mic; I have Eve SC207 monitors which I switch around with Avantone speakers using a Baby RAM Heritage Audio switcher all going into Logic Pro X.”
She’s always known her way around a studio, but preferred to let an engineer handle the tech whilst she concentrated on being creative. It was ‘lockdown’ that changed that however, and she spent a few months honing her own studio space. “First I upgraded the software, which meant upgrading my computer, then my DJ speakers weren’t precise enough, then I couldn’t get the vocal sound I wanted through my original interface, so that also needed an upgrade.”
“Just perfect for travelling and sounds great.”
She asked her guitarist, Ace from Skunk Anansie, who immediately recommended the iD22 from British manufacturer, Audient. It was spot on! “It’s quick and easy to use and understand,” she explains. “It has loads of versatility as I can have two of us singing and playing/recording at the same time, but mainly my vocals sound great so I’m able to really enjoy singing!”
She was so pleased with her iD22 that she picked up the more compact iD4 for when she’s recording vocals on the go. “It’ll save me from having to dismantle my NY studio,” she said. She wasn’t disappointed with the 2in/ 2out audio interface. “I’m really loving it, it’s a little beauty! Just perfect for travelling and sounds great.”
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Music is certainly a constant for Skin, and her studio setup reflects that. “I use a variety of mics depending on what I’m doing. I have a Neumann TLM 49, a Spirit Black from Aston Microphones and a variety of Shure mics, SM58 Beta, SM57, all of which sound great through the iD22 – whether its vocals, guitar or percussion. It’s the backbone of my studio, it’s the dusty piece of gear that never changes.”
So what’s next for her? She has just finished a song for a new BBC Series, ‘SAS Rogue Heroes’ coming out soon and is also working on the next Skunk Anansie album – so she’s pleased that her focus is back on creativity. Having said that, Skin’s inner studio nerd is never far away. “It would be interesting to try out the Audient ASP800,” she muses.
Keep an eye on everything she is doing (it’s a lot: activism, education, writing as well as music) by following her on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
